A Weather Alert Day is in effect for all of Mid-Missouri on Wednesday for the potential of severe storms between late morning and mid-afternoon.

UPDATE:

As of 10 a.m. Wednesday, the remaining areas suitable for any strong storm potential are shrinking. The latest SPC update highlights this area well. This is where some potential for strong winds will reside as storms push through around noon.

As the leading edge of storms pushes out of mid-Missouri, any severe threat will quickly come to an end.

SETUP:

A strong low pressure system that will impact much of the country Wednesday is diving off the Rockies, bringing accumulating snow and ice to much of the upper Midwest, while we'll be on the warmer side of the system tonight into Wednesday. A warm front will lift to our north by tomorrow morning, bringing temperatures into the 50s to start the day. Strong low level winds will be in place, helping storms to become more robust south of the warm front.

Early in the day, instability begins to build ahead of the main line of storms, and this time of year it doesn't take much energy to get storms going if a frontal boundary is in the vicinity along with ample wind shear. Those ingredients will allow for a small window for severe storms from late morning through mid-afternoon across Mid-Missouri.

TIMELINE:

The threat for severe storms will increase as storms move in from the west after 7:00 to 8:00 a.m., pushing through the Highway 65 corridor by 9:00 a.m. Storms race east, arriving in areas along Highway 63 from Moberly to Columbia to Jefferson City by around 11:00 a.m., and continue on to the east through early afternoon. The entire area will be clear of rain and storms by around 3:00 to 4:00 p.m., if not earlier.

THREATS:

Mid-Missouri is in a level 2 out of 5 severe risk on the scale issued by the Storm Prediction Center. The main concerns with this system will be the threat for heavy rain and damaging winds. There will be a low risk for a spin up tornado if storms don't outrun the instability in place, especially west of Highway 63 in the late morning. Damaging straight line winds will be a possibility, with gusts up to 60 mph. Rain amounts will be in the 1" range, but could be locally higher with embedded strong storms. Widespread flooding isn't expected, but there will likely be ponding on the roads.

PREPARE:

Make sure you have a way to receive alerts in the morning. The ABC 17 Stormtrack App is free and provides alerts targeted to your current location. A NOAA weather radio will provide alerts for your set county if plugged in or with fresh batteries. Meteorologists John Ross and Chance Gotsch will be tracking storms starting at 5:00 a.m. on ABC 17 News This Morning.